The market for Belgian government debt outstanding is valued at EUR 252 billion.

Euroclear Bank's comprehensive settlement solution, tailored to primary dealer needs, offers customised services ranging from securities issuance to transaction settlement. The service provides primary dealers with:

• centralised access to the main European National Debt Management Agencies to consolidate transaction flows and optimise back-office operations;
• opportunities to immediately match trading instructions with counterparties prior to settlement;
• seamless settlement of trades with domestic counterparties via Euroclear Bank's direct account in the local central securities depository (CSD);
• the highest settlement efficiency as a result of well-established interoperability with local CSDs;
• free intra-day securities borrowing, offering a cost-effective solution to manage pending trades throughout the day; and
• feeds from major central counterparties and automatic trading systems.

Stefano Bellani, Managing Director and head of the European financing desk at JPMorgan in London, said: "The centralisation of the settlement of our Belgian primary dealership business with Euroclear Bank will allow a simplification of the transaction flow and further improve the efficiency of our European government bond business operations."

Olivier Grimonpont, Director and head of product management for fixedincome securities and collateral services at Euroclear, said: "We are delighted with JPMorgan's decision to consolidate its Belgian primary dealership operations with Euroclear Bank. This decision reinforces our leadership position in supporting primary dealers, particularly within the Euronext zone, offering the highest settlement efficiency rates, transparent information flows between counterparties, exceptional financing capabilities, as well as a range of netting opportunities."